Sainz says race finish a positive

Toro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz Jr. says that finishing the Italian Grand Prix was positive, even though he left Monza without a point.

Sainz arrived at the venue having retired from the previous four races due to mechanical problems but managed to finish in 11th place at Monza, despite a five second time penalty for exceeding track limits.

"I’m pretty happy with the race, especially with our pace," said Sainz.

"We were quick, and towards the end of the race I was getting closer and closer to the ones ahead and, even though I didn’t manage to catch them, it felt good to know that we were faster.

"It’s a shame we didn’t get that final point that I think we deserved, but the five-second penalty I had to complete at the beginning of the race wasn’t ideal.

"There are many positives to take from the weekend: we finally finished a race after four retirements in a row, something I really needed."

Max Verstappen had to serve a drive through penalty early on as a result of his bodywork flying loose in qualifying and says that the sanction cost him a shot at points.

"I couldn’t do much because the drive-through at the start of the race put me on the back-foot, but I think we can be happy with the car’s pace, it was really good," he said after placing 12th.

"Hopefully we have more luck in the next qualifying and start higher up on the grid in Singapore. It wasn’t one of the easiest races, but I enjoyed some more good overtaking moves and I’m happy with that.

"I’m sure that if we hadn’t started from last in the race we would’ve finished in the point."